Camping, Hiking, Camping, Hiking = Great Vacation! Before my wife and I move to Denver, CO we made sure to do a camping trip in Big Bend National Park. Big Bend is located in West Texas, and is really beautiful!

There are tons of trails throughout the park. Make sure to go when it is not too hot because there is very little tree coverage and it gets hot FAST! We went in March before spring break which worked out perfect. The weather was comfortable and the park not to crowded.

It’s funny how you need to spend tons of money on camo, scent killer, tree stands, calls, wake up at 4:30am to get into the woods when you’re hunting; but the deer come right up to you at noon in a national park…. Go figure.

Taking a little snack break. Jerky of course! Notice the red bear spray on my hip. Not many people think that there are bears in Texas, but there are some in the park. No grizzlies, but black bears are very common in the hills of Big Bend NP.

A great view from the top of a hike. This hike was 13 miles and our feet were KILLING us when we finished due to all the small rocks on the trails. The bottom of our feet felt like they were about to fall off. Ouch.

My wife enjoying the Rio Grande that flows through the canyons. Further down the river they do rafting trips. I don’t believe it is a white water trip, but more of a cool way to explore the national park.

If you have never been to Big Bend National Park, I highly recommend it! There are not many camp sites in the park but several right outside. If you are ever in West Texas make the stop, you won’t regret it.

The BEAUTIFUL Grand Teton Mountains! This place was amazing, no other words can describe the raw beauty of nature these National Parks have.

My wife and I flew into Denver from Austin with all our camping equipment in tow. We rented a little car, bought a cooler and food, and set off for 10 days of camping and fun. (We stayed in some hotels…)

The first time I had came to Grand Teton National Park was about 4 months before this trip when I worked a hitch on a drilling rig in Pinedale, Wyoming. I had a day off and shot over to The Grand Teton National Park to check it out. 

Here is a picture of Jenny Lake, a popular destination in the park. This was taken in May. When my wife and I came back in September, we camped at this lake for our first night of camping. 

So fast forward to September 2016 to my wife’s first camping trip. Here are some pictures of hiking around Jenny Lake and our camping set up.

Congrats on the first night of camping Linda!!!!!

Our first night camping was a success! It was nice weather and a great campground. It did not stay like this however. The next day it snowed about 4″ and dropped to 20° at night in Yellowstone NP.  It was rough… Ha.

The park was not crowded and the wildlife and scenery was just breathtaking. We loved taking pictures in the snow. We don’t get that much snow in Austin. (None, we get NO snow in Austin)

We hiked up Mt. Washburn to an elevation of 10,219′. The views were great from the viewing platform on top of the Mountain.

We made it to the TOP!!!

It was a great trip and we loved the hiking. I can’t wait to go back!!! 

Look at those good looking guys! Here is some of the group that took a trip to Homer Alaska to do some Halibut and Salmon fishing. From left to right: Todd, Jim, Will (me), Matt, Bill, Grant.

This trip was awesome. We all flew into Alaska from different corners of the country for a little family fishing reunion (Maryland, West Virginia, Texas, Kentucky). This is the second time I have been to Alaska. The first was back on a country wide road trip back in 2006. This is the second time halibut fishing and my first time salmon fishing! So here are some pictures from that trip:

A picture of my father, brother in law, and I with some Halibut we caught out of Homer, AK.

The whole group Halibut fishing! Left to right: Todd, Grant, Bill, Jim, Matt, Dan, Me, Chase, Jeramy.

Me fishing for Sockeye salmon. There was a lot of rain when we were there and the rivers were REALLY moving fast. This made the sockeye fishing not so great. We got skunked, but still had a blast!

A couple days later we did some King Salmon fishing. The weather was a lot better during this trip. Here is my brother in law and I on the boat trolling in the river.

King Salmon! I have to admit, I did not catch this fish… It was way to great of a photo op to not take the picture though. (No shame… Ha)

Here is a picture of my father and I at just one of the amazing views we saw while in Alaska. I have to thank my dad for taking my brother in law and I on this super fun trip. He helped plan and funded our trip. Thanks Dad!!! Can’t wait for next years trip…. (hint, hint..)

Kauai Hawaii, Amazing trip!

If you can’t already tell, Linda and I decided to Honeymoon on the island of Kauai, HI. We spent 10 days exploring, hiking, sailing, swimming, and enjoying everything the island had to offer. It was fantastic!

I thought I would share some photos with you from our trip. Neither of us had ever been to Hawaii which made the trip even more special and amazing.

Every day we made some time to hang out at a beach. There are so many beaches on Kauai to explore. Some you could swim at and some had really bad undertows which cautioned people from going in the water.

There was a hurricane cruising past the island to the East  the first couple days we were there which made the waves a little larger than normal. Luckily, everything worked out fantastic and we got to do everything we wanted to.

The most interesting thing we did on this trip was go on a helicopter tour of the island. It was SO MUCH FUN! I have never been on a helicopter and this flight did not disappoint. We chose a helicopter that did not have any doors which made the flight even that much more enthralling.

The views are amazing and being as much of the island does not have roads, really the only way to see the island.

A sailing trip up the coast gave us great views of the famous Napali Coast and a fantastic steak dinner on the water. We had a lot of fun seeing dolphins, turtles, drinking beer, and talking with the other travelers.

There was a lot of fantastic hiking on the island. We were able to squeeze in an 4 mile hike up to a waterfall which was the perfect way to cool down before the hike back. Hiking along the cliffs offered breath taking views of the ocean and waves.

Coming to this island was amazing! Great views, fantastic beaches, and beautiful blue water made our honeymoon unforgettable. The mountains and lush green landscape did remind me of somewhere I traveled several years ago.

I traveled to South East Asia and the views are remarkably similar. I guess Hawaii is halfway there from the states, so makes sense… Linda’s family is from Vietnam and she also couldn’t believe how much the Island looks like Vietnam. Here is a picture that really looks like Asia.

The trip was great and I am already itching to go back! Okay, maybe not the same Island, but I am ready to go somewhere new…. I guess I’ll get started thinking about the next vacation! Until next time….

 

That’s right, I got married to my now beautiful wife Linda! I figured I would share some photos from that amazing day. We had a blast and it was fantastic to get the family together.

Linda and I got married in a small town called Southold, New York. It is a little town at the end of the north fork of Long Island, New York. Both my family and hers are from New York, that is why we made the long trip from Austin, Texas up to the big apple. (Other than my parents living in Corpus Christi half the year, we are the only ones living in God’s Country…. aka. Texas)

The rehearsal dinner was held at my Uncle’s house on the water down the road in Greenport, NY. This is where Linda and I first met and is the reason we decided to hold our wedding on the north fork.

The reception was held at Raphael Vineyards. The place is beautiful and we couldn’t have asked for a better day.

Here are a couple more images from the day. I will try to post some more when we get the professional pictures from the photographer. Most of these photos were taken by my good friend Kyle.

Me in the back, friend Little O on the left, Cousin James with his back to the camera, and friend Albert on the right. My two friends flew up from Texas for the wedding. It was their first time in New York.

The Priest did not show up for the rehearsal… The ceremony was interesting…. We ended up married so I guess it wasn’t too bad!

I ran around the day before the wedding looking for Roses because at the last minute my wife wanted to walk out of the church and have the crowd of people throw flowers at us. Got it done!

Had a blast at the reception. Open bar…… of course it was great!

Here are some photos from the Professional Photographer…

Recently on a trip up to New York to finalize some last minute details before my wedding, I had the opportunity to do a little fishing. My cousins James (Jimbo), Andrew, and James put together a fantastic offshore fishing trip in Ocean City, Maryland. It was a blast!

We packed some clothes, good tunes, iced tea, sunflower seeds, and homemade jerky for the 4 hour road trip south.

I had my good friend Kyle and brother in law Bo meet us there for what would be an epic fishing trip. After an early night, waking up at 3:15am, and getting to the dock by 4:30am; the next 12 hours would turn out to be a non-stop fishing high.

Here is a picture of the group; all but my cousin Jimbo who is taking the picture. From the left: Kyle, Andrew, James, Me, & Bo. Pretty good looking group I must say! A fish’s nightmare however….

We caught a total of 5 White Marlin, 2 Yellow Fin Tuna, and about 7 Mahi Mahi. That is a hell of a trip!

Yours truly hooked the first White Marlin. It has been a while since fighting a fish that big, my arms were screaming by the end of the fight.

The only bad news is that I did not get a picture holding my Marlin like everyone else did. We were so happy about catching a Marlin that we never got that far. I do have a picture with a big smile right after catching the beast!

Brother Kyle landed and got  a great picture with his Marlin!

After having one get away, James caught a monster as well. These marlin were hitting our teasers right behind the boat (Lures with out hooks strictly to make splashes and attract the fish). It was a sight to see! The Mahi would also come shooting across the water slamming our artificials baited with ballyhoo.

Jimbo landed the first Tuna which everyone was ecstatic about having later for dinner! We love catching marlin, but White Marlin are not great for eating. Tuna and Mahi are some of the best fish to eat in the world. Everyone broke out in cheers when this guy made his way over the rail and into the boat. Fresh sushi anyone?

Everyone was having fun in the sun. We couldn’t be stopped. The Captain kept putting us on the fish and the deck hand stayed busy all day.

This picture of Andrew and I was taken after Andrew landed this bad boy…

James had a pretty nice one as well.

Bo brought in the last fish of the day. Another Tuna. I do not have a picture of him holding the tuna but I do have one of him fighting this 70lb fish which everyone was super pumped about adding to the bait box!

Kyle brought a bad ass camera with even more bad ass lenses that took some GREAT action shots of some Marlin and Mahi Mahi.

After this great trip, everyone took a little nap on the 3 hour boat ride back to the dock. We proudly displayed our catch in front of the eyes of patrons at the dock restaurant.

No one on the boat had caught a bill fish before and were informed that after catching your first bill fish, a jump in the water is required. We were happy to jump in the water… We smelled terrible and wanted to go swimming all day!

So, back flips off the dock was a great way to end this fantastic trip. I want to thank the guys for putting together such a great weekend. The fishing was AMAZING!!!